Results for "Stephen Sondheim"

Stephen Sondheim

Born: March 22, 1930

Stephen Joshua Sondheim was born on March 22, 1930, in New York City to Herbert and Janet Sondheim, both of whom worked in the fashion industry. His early childhood was marked by privilege mixed with family tension, and when his parents divorced in 1940, ten-year-old Stephen moved with his mother to Bucks County, Pennsylvania. There, he found a crucial mentor in his neighbor, the legendary lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II, who became a father figure and carefully guided the young boy’s budding interest in songwriting.

Sondheim attended Williams College, where he majored in music and graduated in 1950. After college he studied further with the avant-garde composer Milton Babbitt before entering the world of professional theater. His first major breakthrough came in 1957 when, at the age of twenty-seven, he wrote the lyrics for Leonard Bernstein’s groundbreaking musical West Side Story. Two years later he supplied the lyrics for Jule Styne’s Gypsy, starring Ethel Merman. These early successes established him as one of Broadway’s most gifted lyricists, yet Sondheim was determined to write both music and lyrics for his own shows.

Cécile McLorin Salvant At Buffalo’s Art Of Jazz

by Frank Housh
May 13, 2026

Cecile McLorin Salvant with Sullivan Fortner  Buffalo Akg Art Museum  Art Of Jazz Buffalo  April 19, 2026 Thick, bright, layered pellets of snow, raised from Lake Erie's surface and chilled in a cold, early spring wind pelted the faces of Buffalo jazz lovers as we entered Buffalo Akg Art Museum's Lipsey Auditorium for ...

Ian Shaw: Stephensong

by Neil Duggan
November 20, 2025

With numerous plaudits and awards garnered over a long career, vocalist Ian Shaw presents Stephensong. A deep dive into the work of one of the most important figures in 20th-century musical theater, composer Stephen Sondheim. Sondheim was also no stranger to awards, having picked up eight Grammy Awards, an Academy Award and the Pulitzer Prize.

Sonhos, Pesadelos & An American Tune

by Katchie Cartwright
September 21, 2025

Dreams and nightmares this week on Caminhos do Jazz, with a host of superb Brazilian performers, including singers Maria Bethânia, Gal Costa, Alaide Costa, Lenine and the MPB group Nação Zumbi. The set also includes a cut by the extraordinary Norwegian world-jazz ensemble Music for a While, featuring vocalist Tora Augestad, and one from the renowned ...

Charles Lloyd, Enjoying the Comforts and Poetics of Home, at the Lobero

by Josef Woodard
March 28, 2025

Charles Lloyd Delta Trio Lobero Theatre Santa Barbara, CA March 14, 2025 Seasoned saxophonist Charles Lloyd, now 87 and alighting major stages, festivals and accolade zones around the world, is considered one of the last of the old school jazz legends standing--and going strong, in his mellowed, wise and distinctively voiced ...

At The Peninsula Library 1972, A Previously Unreleased Live Recording From Jazz Pianist Marian McPartland, Arrives April 11 From Liberation Hall

January 23, 2025

Liberation Hall has announced details of a previously unreleased concert recording by legendary jazz pianist Marian McPartland. Captured before an intimate crowd of fans and students in Long Island, New York, the 18-track At the Peninsula Library 1972 will arrive April 11 on 180-gram vinyl LP, CD and download. All formats will be distributed by MVD ...

Angela Verbrugge: Somewhere

by Katchie Cartwright
November 27, 2024

Based in Victoria, British Columbia, Angela Verbrugge keeps a busy schedule as a singer, touring in Canada and farther afield. In addition to performing, she writes songs--jazz songs, new standards--with lyrics that are engagingly personal and funny, containing the occasional acerbic twist. As a lyricist, she often speaks to the quotidian. Her texts are a perfect ...

Chris Oatts’ Pretty Big Band at Chris’ Jazz Café

by Victor L. Schermer
June 7, 2024

Chris Oatts' Pretty Big Band Chris' Jazz Café Philadelphia, PA May 28, 2024 The nonet, a nine-member ensemble which enables features of both small group and big band arranging and playing, has probably deserved greater use than it has seen in jazz over the years. Among the ...

Cyrille Aimée: Music Flows From Within

by Scott Lichtman
April 9, 2024

Renowned vocalist Cyrille Aimée possesses a wholly unique sound. Certainly, it is based on her voice timbre but also reflects her approach to music. She is equally adept at jazz standards and pop-jazz. She can swing and scat on cue, then shift to high tech sound loops. Songs in English, French and Spanish are delivered with ...

Elina Duni: A Time to Remember

by Chris May
July 3, 2023

Someone once described Leonard Cohen's music as “uplifting in a peculiarly depressing way." The music of singer Elina Duni and guitarist Rob Luft is not depressing, though it certainly is uplifting. It is, however, full of tristesse, of sadness for things that are lost, be they people or places. This feeling goes deeper than mere nostalgia. ...